Why a Root Canal Can Kill You:
Eight Scary Truths About a Common Dental Procedure
No one looks forward to a root canal, true—but if one becomes necessary, most of us don’t
fret too much. According to Thomas E. Levy, MD, we should. He explains how root
canals introduce killer toxins into your body and eat away at your long-term health.
Eight Scary Truths About a Common Dental Procedure
No one looks forward to a root canal, true—but if one becomes necessary, most of us don’t
fret too much. According to Thomas E. Levy, MD, we should. He explains how root
canals introduce killer toxins into your body and eat away at your long-term health.
Henderson, NV (May
2014)—Over the past few days, your sensitive tooth has progressed from
the occasional cold-drink-induced twinge, to hurting when you chew, to
causing constant pain. Your dentist squeezes you in, takes a look, and
says, “You need a root canal.” At this point, you’re so miserable that
you’re actually looking forward to the procedure. The
last
thing you’d think to ask is, “Is this safe?” After all, people have root
canals all the time. There’s nothing to worry about (other than whether
this is covered by insurance), right?
Wrong. Thomas E. Levy, MD, JD, says a root canal may be the most
effective way to infuse a perpetual fountain of killer toxins into the
human body. (Yes, you read that correctly.)
“The root canal is a scientifically flawed dental procedure that allows
chronic infection and toxin formation in the affected tooth, and that
allows those toxins and their associated pathogens to be pumped into
your body each time you chew,” says Dr. Levy, author of
Death by Calcium: Proof of the Toxic Effects of Dairy and Calcium Supplements
(MedFox Publishing, 2013, ISBN: 978-0-615-88960-3, $29.95, www.deathbycalcium.com).
“In turn, these infections and toxins can initiate and worsen chronic
degenerative diseases—most notably, heart disease, cancer, and
osteoporosis. “One root canal-treated tooth’s ability to devastate the antioxidant capacity of the body cannot really be overstated,” he adds.
Yikes. The thought of tracing a malignant tumor, heart attack, or broken bone back to a dental procedure you not only thought would help you, but you actually paid for, is horrifying. How is this possible?
“While most dentists and root canal specialists are not aware of this information, they also appear to go to great lengths to not even examine or reevaluate the mountains of new scientific evidence that is being published on the infectious nature of the root canal-treated tooth,” comments Dr. Levy. “The root canal is a very common and well-reimbursed dental procedure, and dentists who do it often don’t want to consider the possibility of performing it less frequently. Who wants to cut their income by 50 percent overnight?”
Dr. Levy devotes a section of Death by Calcium to examining root canals and other dental procedures, in which he presents compelling scientific evidence that exposes root canals as a major source of toxin exposure. When a toxin enters the body, he explains, it starts a molecular “fire” that grows and spreads like a blaze through a forest. Scientists call these “fires” oxidative stress. Interestingly, chronically elevated calcium levels in and around the cells is a common denominator for most, if not all, forms of oxidative stress—hence Dr. Levy examines the topic in his book.
“Infections and toxins, such as those found in root canal-treated teeth that have been carefully examined, drain the body’s antioxidant stores and make the accumulations of calcium even more toxic than they would be otherwise,” he explains. “It’s really impossible to completely normalize the excess calcium stores and their associated toxicity while continuing to shower the body in the steady output of pathogens and toxins from root canal-treated teeth.” Note to Editor: See attached tipsheet for more dangerous dental procedures.
Here, Dr. Levy unmasks the toxic truth behind root canals:
First, understand what a root canal actually is. A healthy tooth has a relatively soft, sterile interior known as dental pulp, which contains an abundance of blood vessels and nerves. The cavity containing the pulp is actually known as the “root canal,” although the term is most commonly used to refer to the procedure of removing the dental pulp and replacing it with a dental material. Most commonly, root canals are performed on patients complaining of significant tooth pain.
“Often, but not invariably, that pain is associated with an infection in the dental pulp,” explains Dr. Levy. “Very inaccurately, modern dentistry maintains that the root canal procedure ‘cleans up’ the tooth and eliminates the infection. Sometimes, dentists will even perform the procedure on the premise that they want to ‘prevent’ the tooth, often heavily decayed, from later becoming infected. But as you’ll see, nothing could be further from the truth! The only positive clinical result of a root canal procedure is a potentially pain-free tooth.”
The root canal procedure is fatally flawed. A living tooth has continual access to the body’s immune system due to its blood supply, connective tissue, and nerves—all of which make up the pulp. But since the root canal removes this material, immune cells are no longer able to reach any infection-causing microbes in any part of the tooth. In fact, the dental filling inserted during a root canal procedure helps block immune cells from gaining access.
“If your immune cells can’t reach the microbes in a root canal-treated tooth, they can’t kill those microbes or stop them from multiplying,” states Dr. Levy. “Furthermore, the lack of a normal blood-and-nerve-containing matrix prevents the proper elimination of toxic waste products that will instead continue to accumulate. Although the tooth can continue to function mechanically in the chewing of food, it is dead physiologically. No matter how technically perfect and antiseptic a root canal procedure was, it will always result in infected dental pulp that will remain infected as long as the treated tooth is in the mouth.”
All root canal-treated teeth are dangerously toxic. There’s no denying that “permanently infected tooth” sounds undesirable. But still, the mouths of root canal patients seem normal. There’s no residual pain. Clearly, this infection isn’t that much to worry about…is it? In a word: yes. A specialized laboratory examined over 5,000 consecutive extracted root canal-treated teeth, and 100 percent were found to house highly potent toxins.
“Ignore this scientific data at your own peril,” says Dr. Levy. “It has been established that dental pulp infections harbor harmful microbes and pathogens including fungi, viruses, and over 460 types of bacteria. These toxins can block or poison the activity of several critical metabolic enzymes necessary in the production of energy in the body.”
If you’re skeptical, consider this: Botulinum toxin is currently considered to be the most potent toxin known to man, and it’s produced when Clostridium botulinum bacteria are trapped in an environment severely deprived of or completely devoid of oxygen.
“Often, botulinum toxin occurs in contaminated vacuum-packed food and results in severe poisoning,” says Dr. Levy. “Guess what other environment is perfect for this toxin’s formation? The evacuated pulp chamber of a root canal-treated tooth. Many other bacteria can become trapped and produce potent toxins, too.”
Specifically, these teeth act as “toxin pumps.” We’ve established that the serious health consequences of root canals really begin with the production of toxins. But those toxins are produced in the mouth—inside of a single tooth, to be exact. How can they compromise a patient’s overall health? According to Dr. Levy, the nature of chewing makes root canal-treated teeth an especially well-designed delivery system for toxins.
“Rather than just staying put inside the tooth, the toxins—along with the pathogens that have produced those toxins—are expressed directly into the lymphatic and venous blood drainage of the jawbone,” he explains. “This is especially the case when chewing takes place. The act of chewing generates extremely high pressures, meaning that every time you eat a meal or chew gum, you’re essentially pumping toxins into your body.
“To clarify, the venous drainage system is different from the blood vessels and nerves removed from the tooth during a root canal procedure,” Dr. Levy says. “While toxins can get out, so to speak, immune cells—or at least enough of them to make a difference—can’t find their way in.”
Root canals are often the hidden culprits behind disease. When a “healthy” man has his first heart attack at 50, or when a woman of that age notices what turns out to be a malignant breast lump, their first thoughts aren’t likely to be, Oh no! The root canal I had 15 years ago is finally catching up with me! But that may, in fact, be what happened. Over time, the toxins a root canal-treated tooth introduce into the body can overwhelm the immune system and drain the body’s antioxidant stores. And those antioxidants are the single most important protection the body has against the development of degenerative diseases like heart disease, cancer, and osteoporosis.
“Yes, some individuals are fortunate enough to postpone the almost-inevitable decline in health for many years after undergoing a root canal,” comments Dr. Levy. “Youth, a naturally strong immune system, and good nutrition can all temporarily stave off disease. Eventually, though, the antioxidant-draining capacity of these toxic teeth will gain the upper hand.
“This isn’t breaking news, either,” he continues. “As early as the 1950s, Dr. Josef Issels found that 98 percent of his adult cancer patients had two to ten dead teeth—and Dr. Issels considered all root canal-treated teeth to be dead. His protocol for advanced cancer patients who had been deemed incurable started with the extraction of all root canal-treated and infected teeth—and his cancer survival rates vastly exceeded any mainstream therapies then or now.”
Mainstream dentistry is not addressing the problem. A surprising 2009 study—surprising because it was published in a mainstream dental journal—found that individuals with root canal-treated teeth were significantly more likely to have coronary heart disease than those without them. And an earlier study showed that infection in the dental pulp correlates with the more rapid appearance of heart disease. (Any time the pulp of a tooth becomes infected, the long-term health consequences will approach, if not equal, that of a root canal-treated tooth as long as it stays in the mouth.)
“Despite the evident dangers, an entire large branch of dentistry—endodontics—is dedicated to the performance and development of the root canal procedure,” says Dr. Levy. “Why? Well, relative to other commonly performed dental procedures, root canals are relatively simple, rapid, and generously reimbursed. Of course those who stand to benefit most financially would be likely to ignore or deny the clear cause-and-effect relationship between root canals and disease.”
Lasers cannot eliminate root canal infection. Currently, many dentists maintain that root canal-treated teeth can be “sterilized” with dental lasers. But according to Dr. Levy, any dentist making this claim simply does not understand the basic principles of a laser. Namely, a laser inactivates or destroys only something directly in its path. It cannot take a left or right turn.
“And that’s exactly what the laser would need to do in order to completely clear microbe-harboring tubules in teeth,” explains Dr. Levy. “The only outcome achievable by a laser directed into the pulp chamber is a temporary kill-off of microbes directly in the path of the laser beam.”
Root canal-treated teeth must be extracted. Roughly 14 million root canal procedures are performed each year, so odds are good that you will eventually be faced with one, if you haven’t been already. And most dentists are likely to tell you (and perhaps even genuinely believe) that this procedure is safe. That’s why you must be the guardian of your own health.
“Most dentists will perform multiple root canals on the same tooth before considering its extraction,” says Dr. Levy. “But extraction is exactly what needs to happen, whether you’re currently facing a root canal or have had one in the past. As a patient, it is your right to decline a root canal and insist on extraction, no matter how strenuously your dentist objects. The availability of implants, partial plates, and dentures, along with a decreased chance of heart attack or cancer, should be strong motivations for most patients.”
“Based on scientific evidence, the root canal procedure is one that should no longer be performed on anyone, ever,” concludes Dr. Levy. “And teeth that have already undergone this procedure should be properly extracted.
“Over a 10-year period, the number of root canal procedures performed is roughly equivalent to 50 percent of the entire U.S. population,” he adds. “It has had and continues to have an enormous impact on public health. While it’s too late to prevent countless cases of degenerative disease that have begun in the dental chair, this does not have to continue to be the case.”
# # #
Dangerous Dentistry Part Deux: Beyond the Root Canal
Bombshell, Four More Shocking “Tooth Truths” You Need to Know
By Thomas E. Levy, MD, JD, author of Death by Calcium: Proof of the Toxic
Effects of Dairy and Calcium Supplements (MedFox Publishing, 2013,
ISBN: 978-0-615-88960-3, $29.95, www.deathbycalcium.com)
We encounter harmful toxins from a variety of sources: processed food,
pollution, household cleaners, even certain cosmetic products. But one
place most of us
don’t
expect to be exposed to them is the dental chair. After all, dentists
study and train for years to help patients achieve and maintain oral
health. Most sincerely want to help people. That’s why it’s shocking to
learn that so much of what dentists do actually compromises your future
health.Bombshell, Four More Shocking “Tooth Truths” You Need to Know
By Thomas E. Levy, MD, JD, author of Death by Calcium: Proof of the Toxic
Effects of Dairy and Calcium Supplements (MedFox Publishing, 2013,
ISBN: 978-0-615-88960-3, $29.95, www.deathbycalcium.com)
“People are shocked to hear that root canals are so deadly, but they’re
only part of the story,” says Thomas E. Levy, MD, JD, author of
Death by Calcium: Proof of the Toxic Effects of Dairy and Calcium Supplements.
“Modern dentistry regularly produces some exceptionally toxic assaults on the human body.”
Here are four toxic truths about what might actually be happening while
you’re in the dentist’s chair…and what you can do to reverse the
damage:Cavitations have dire consequences.
The danger: A cavitation is the residual hole resulting from the incomplete healing of the jawbone after a tooth is extracted. While mainstream dentistry is reluctant to acknowledge it, cavitations are extremely common. (They’re present at the sites of healed-over wisdom teeth extraction sites nearly 90 percent of the time.) The problem? Typical cavitations contain a putrid, usually foul-smelling, highly toxic sludge that’s pathologically and chemically indistinguishable from wet gangrene. That toxicity can challenge the immune system and impact the rest of the body in much the same way that root canal-induced toxicity does, albeit less predictably so.
The remedy: When the periodontal ligament is removed along with a tooth, the natural stimulus for the growth of new bone cells is present, and healing can begin. But even though removal of this ligament isn’t involved or time consuming, modern dentistry doesn’t include it as a routine part of a dental extraction—meaning that the surrounding jawbone cells have no physiological awareness that the tooth is gone. For this reason, a dentist or oral surgeon with experience in the surgical repair of cavitations and the removal of periodontal ligaments should perform the ligament removal procedure, as well as a surgical evacuation and complete cleaning of the cavitation.
Dental implants don’t always solve problems.
The danger: After a tooth is extracted, it’s not surprising that a patient would want a dental implant at the site of the missing tooth. (Implants are used to anchor a prosthetic tooth, bridge, or denture.) Physiologically, though, dental implants can be a source of substantial toxicity and infection because they are often placed directly in and through an evolving cavitation. In fact, the implant can serve as a conduit that exposes previously healthy bone to toxins and microbes that facilitate the formation of new cavitations. An additional downside to implants is that they can cause an immune reaction or rejection of the foreign material.
The remedy: Infected dental implants should be removed. However, when done correctly—i.e., when healthy bone is allowed to grow back for four to six months after an extraction—an implant can be a good solution for a missing tooth. While an individual can certainly have more than one implant, it is a better idea to have a partial plate if too many teeth are missing. If you find a dentist experienced in implantology who is willing to respect these conditions, implants are a good option.
Fillings can be filled with toxins.
The danger: Mercury
amalgam fillings (i.e., the “silver” ones) are more than 50 percent
mercury. That’s a big problem, because mercury is the most toxic heavy
metal known to science, as well as the most toxic non-radioactive
element in existence. While the debate over just
how
dangerous these fillings are continues, it’s undeniable that they
continually release mercury vapor over time, which is inhaled or
absorbed by tissues in the mouth. Although public health awareness
groups are gradually bringing one of dentistry’s oldest “dirty little
secrets” into the light, these fillings continue to be placed at an
alarmingly high rate by dentists who don’t want to change, and/or who
haven’t examined the overwhelming body of evidence indicating
how toxic these fillings are.
The remedy:
Mercury amalgam fillings should be properly removed and replaced by
using biocompatible materials. Serum biocompatibility testing can
provide guidance in selecting the least toxic and immunoreactive
materials for use in any given patient. And in the future, discuss the
materials your dentist uses with him or her
before
undergoing a filling. Don’t allow your dentist to simply use the materials that he or she likes most.
Dental reconstructions are often destructive.
The danger:
Another highly toxic material, nickel, is used extensively in the metal
alloys used in dental restorations because it is durable, corrosion
resistant, and cheap. It’s also one of the most carcinogenic metals
known to medicine. Ironically, many dentists know that nickel is
carcinogenic; they simply don’t realize how much of it is present in the
stainless steel and other common metal alloys they utilize. And aside
from nickel-containing alloys, other dental materials are produced using
toxic chemicals that remain noxious after placement in the mouth.
The remedy: Again, toxic reconstructions should be removed and replaced with biocompatible materials.
# # #
About the Author:
Thomas E. Levy, MD, JD, is the author of Death by Calcium: Proof of the Toxic Effects of Dairy and Calcium Supplements. He is a board-certified cardiologist and is also the author of Primal Panacea and Curing the Incurable: Vitamin C, Infectious Diseases, and Toxins; plus three other groundbreaking medical books. He is one of the world’s leading vitamin C experts and frequently lectures to medical professionals all over the globe about the proper role of vitamin C and antioxidants in the treatment of a host of medical conditions and diseases.
Thomas E. Levy, MD, JD, is the author of Death by Calcium: Proof of the Toxic Effects of Dairy and Calcium Supplements. He is a board-certified cardiologist and is also the author of Primal Panacea and Curing the Incurable: Vitamin C, Infectious Diseases, and Toxins; plus three other groundbreaking medical books. He is one of the world’s leading vitamin C experts and frequently lectures to medical professionals all over the globe about the proper role of vitamin C and antioxidants in the treatment of a host of medical conditions and diseases.
For more information, please visit www.deathbycalcium.com.
